Mark Cross Bags Launch Next Week at Barneys

Established in 1845 in Boston, the Mark Cross Company began as a saddlery manufacturer. Just three decades after its launch, 17-year-old Patrick Murphy bought the entire enterprise for $6,000, moved its headquarters to New York City, and opened a shop on Fifth Avenue. The family leather-goods business, which Patrick’s son Gerald began running with his wife Sara in the 1910s, soon caught the eye of F. Scott and Zelda Fitzgerald, Ernest Hemingway, Cole Porter and other celebrated artists of the early ’20s. And thanks to the couple’s social lifestyle (they were fixtures on the French Riviera), word of their leather work quickly spread.

But despite a celebrity fan base and silver-screen placement—Mark Cross luggage was featured in the Hitchcock classic Rear Window—the fickle fashion industry didn’t support Murphy’s company forever. Mark Cross shuttered in 1997.

Now, 15 years later, the heritage brand is reborn. Landing exclusively at Barneys locations starting January 30, "Collection 1" by Mark Cross offers beautiful, classic handbags in a variety of retro silhouettes and rich neutral hues. Check out a few of our favorites from the relaunched label in the slideshow.